BSI€>35 
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RARY  OF  THE  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 


PRINCETON,  N.  J. 


Section vl   A  jN    lJ\ 


Uhc  TUniversiti?  ot  Cbicago 

FOUNDED  BV  JOHN  D.  ROCKEFELLER 


THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE 
OF    HABAKKUK 


A     DISSERTATION     SUBMITTED     TO     THE     FACULTIES     OF     THE     GRADUATE 

SCHOOLS    OF    ARTS,   LITERATURE,  AND    SCIENCE,   IN    CANDIDACY 

FOR    THE    DEGREE    OF     DOCTOR    OF     PHILOSOPHY 

(department    of    old    TESTAMENT    LITERATURE    AND    INTERPRETATION) 


BY 

FRED  T.  KELLY 


CHICAGO 

Zbe  "Clnlverstts  of  Cblcago  press 
1902 


THE   STROPHIC   STRUCTURE   OF   HABAKKUK. 


In  the  following  study  an  attempt  is  made  to  discover  the 
original  strophic  division  of  the  book  of  Habakkuk,  or  of  the 
parts  of  which  it  is  composed.  As  the  question  of  the  source  of 
the  material  is  somewhat  closely  related  to  the  strophic  arrange- 
ment, it  will  be  necessary  to  consider  the  integrity  of  the  book 
before  discussing  the  strophes  in  detail. 

The  greatest  diversity  of  opinion  obtains  with  regard  to  how 
much  of  the  book  may  be  attributed  to  the  prophet  himself. 
Some  credit  him  with  the  whole  of  the  book,  while  others  credit 
him  with  a  minor  portion  of  it;  e.  g.,  Stade,  ZATW.,  Vol.  IV, 
pp.  154-9,  gives  him  1:2  to  2:8,  or  only  28  verses  out  of  64  (66). 
Others,  admitting  the  authenticity  of  some  parts  rejected  by 
Stade,  reject  a  part  of  that  accepted  by  him.  Thus  Wellhausen, 
followed  by  Nowack,  throws  out  1:5-11  as  an  earlier  oracle. 

In  speaking  of  the  integrity  of  the  book,  it  will  simplify 
matters  to  discuss  the  authenticity  of  the  third  chapter  first. 
This  chapter  treats  the  subject  of  the  oppression  of  the  righteous 
from  a  wholly  different  standpoint  from  thpt  taken  in  the  rest  of 
the  book  ;  the  style  is  quite  different,  and  the  expected  deliver- 
ance is  to  be  wrought  out  in  a  wholly  different  manner.  So  that 
even  the  most  energetic  supporters  of  the  unity  of  chaps.  1  and  2 
express  their  doubts  about  chap.  3.  Many  put  it  late  in  the 
Babylonian  exile.  However  it  may  be  viewed,  it  seems  hardly 
probable  that  Habakkuk  wrote  it. 

The  passage  that  causes  so  much  trouble  in  all  attempts  at 
finding  a  logical  connection  for  the  material  in  chaps.  1  and  2  is 
the  section  1:5-11.  As  noted  above,  Wellhausen  disposes  of  the 
matter  summarily  by  cutting  it  out.  Giesebrecht,  recognizing 
that  it  is  out  of  place  in  the  MT.,  places  it  before  vs.  2,  but 
this  is  unsatisfactory.  Budde,  followed  by  Cornill  and  G.  A. 
Smith,  places  it  after  2:4,  but  this  has  not  been  generally 
accepted. 

3 


4  THE    STEOPHIC    STKUCTUEE    OF    HABAKKUK 

At  present  we  may  say  that,  in  general,  there  are  two  lines  of 
interpretation  of  the  two  chapters,  as  represented  by  Driver,  with 
the  order  of  the  MT.,  on  the  one  hand,  and  as  represented  by 
Budde,  on  the  other.  There  are  slight  differences  of  detail,  due 
in  large  part  to  differences  in  emendations  of  text,  etc.,  but  these 
two  views  may  be  said  to  be  representative. 

According  to  the  view  represented  by  Driver  (in  Hastings' 
Dictionary  of  the  Bible  and  his  Introduction  to  the  Literature  of 
the  Old  Testament),  in  1:2-4  the  prophet  views  with  dismay  the 
lawlessness  and  violence  now  reigning  in  Judah,  and  expostulates 
with  Yahweh  for  allowing  this  to  go  on  unchecked.  In  1:5-11 
Yahweh  answers  that  the  punishment  is  near  at  hand.  He  is 
raising  up  the  Chaldseans,  that  bitter  and  hasty  nation  that 
marches  through  the  land  to  take  possession  of  dwelling-places 
not  its  own ;  whose  advance  is  swift  and  irresistible  ;  whose  law 
is  its  own  imperious  will ;  who,  subduing  one  country  after 
another,  deifies  its  own  might. 

But  the  answer  raises  a  fresh  difficulty  in  the  mind  of  the 
prophet,  as  he  contemplates  the  rapacity  and  inhumanity  of  the 
Chaldseans  as  they  overcome  the  other  nations  ;  the  thought  is 
forced  upon  him  (1:12-17) :  "Can  this  be  God's  method  of  recti- 
fying injustice?"  That  is,  if  He  has  ordained  the  power  of  the 
Chaldseans  for  judgment,  is  it  possible  that  it  can  be  a  part  of 
"His  pure  and  holy  purpose"  that  they  should  so  exceed  the 
bounds  of  their  commission  by  trampling  upon  all  nations  in  such 
a  reckless  manner?  Is  not  this  a  greater  wrong  than  that  which 
it  was  intended  to  correct? 

In  2 : 1-4  the  prophet  places  himself  in  imagination  upon  his 
prophetic  watchtower  (c/.  Isa.  21:6),  and  waits  for  the  answer  of 
Yahweh  to  his  complaint,  or  impeachment  of  Grod's  justice  in 
governing  the  world.  The  significance  of  the  answer  is  indicated 
by  the  fact  that  it  is  to  be  inscribed  on  tablets  that  may  be  easily 
read  by  all.  It  is  this:  "The  soul  of  the  Chaldeean  is  elated 
with  pride,  but  the  righteous  shall  live  by  his  faithfulness." 
The  moral  distinction  indicated  carries  with  it  the  different  des- 
tinies of  the  Chaldeean  and  the  righteous  —  destruction,  sooner  or 
later,  for  the  one  and  life  for  the  other. 

After  dwelling  for  a  moment  (vs.  5)  upon  the  ambitious 
designs  of  the  Chaldseans,  the  prophet  develops  at  length  the 
ruin  destined  to  overtake  them.     This  is  put  dramatically  in  the 


THE    STEOPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  5 

mouths  of  the  subjugated  peoples  in  the  form  of  "taunting 
proverbs,"  denouncing  in  turn  the  insatiable  lust  of  conquest 
shown  by  the  Chaldseans,  their  suicidal  policy  pursued  in  estab- 
lishing their  dominion,  the  dishonesty  and  cruelty  by  which  the 
magnificence  of  their  cities  is  kept  up,  their  wild  and  barbarous 
triumph  over  the  subdued  nations,  and  their  irrational  idolatry. 
At  the  close  of  the  last  "woe"  the  prophet  passes  from  the  con- 
templation of  dumb  and  helpless  idols  to  the  thought  of  the  living 
Grod  enthroned  in  his  heaveanly  place. 

Budde,  in  Theologische  Studien  und  Kritiken,  1893,  pp.  383 
sqq.,  and  Encyclopcedia  Biblica,  starting  on  the  theory  that 
1:5-11  forms  a  break,  as  many  are  willing  to  admit,  between 
1:2-4  and  1:12  sqq.,  joins  1:4  to  1:12,  deleting  vs.  12c,  d  (also 
deleted  by  others  who  do  not  accept  his  arrangement  of  the 
material),  because  it  furnishes  a  premature  solution  of  the 
problem.  Then  1:5-11  is  put  after  2:4  and  interpreted  as  fol- 
lows :  The  prophet  complains  that  he  is  left  to  cry  in  vain  for 
help  against  the  oppression  and  tyranny  of  the  wicked  (Assyria), 
on  whose  account  law  and  justice  are  suffering  (1:2-4).  The 
prophet  cannot  see  how  Yahweh,  holy  and  just  Himself,  can  permit 
the  wicked  to  destroy  the  righteous  (Israel),  how  he  is  allowed 
to  take  men  and  peoples  like  fish  with  hook  and  net,  and  then 
deify  the  instruments  by  which  he  maintains  his  wealth  and 
greatness  (vss.  12-17). 

In  2:1  the  prophet  takes  his  stand  upon  his  watchtower  and 
awaits  the  answer  to  his  complaint.  In  vss.  2-4  the  prophet  is 
bidden  to  write  on  tablets,  and  set  up  where  all  may  read  them, 
the  joyous  news  that  help  is  coming  in  due  time,  and  that  the 
just  who  waits  patiently  shall  live  by  his  faithfulness. 

Then,  according  to  Budde,  1:5-11  follows,  announcing  the 
coming  of  the  Chaldseans  whom  Yahweh  is  about  to  raise  up 
against  the  wicked  (Assyria)  to  destroy  them.  The  writer  char- 
acterizes these  Chaldseans  as  bitter,  impetuous,  irresistible,  sub- 
duing one  country  after  another,  i.  e.,  as  the  Assyrians  have  used 
violence  on  other  peoples,  so  they  themselves  shall  be  subjects 
of  violence. 

Then  the  prophet  returns  in  2:5  sqq.  to  the  violent  one 
(Assyria),  who  has  preyed  upon  other  nations  and  puts  in  the 
mouths  of  these  nations^  taunting  proverbs,  developing  in  five 

'  In  his  notes  Budde  deletes  2 :  6a,  6,  thus  making  the  prophet  utter  the  woes. 


6  THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTUBE    OF    HABAKKUK 

woes   the    ruin    destined    to    be    meted    out    to    their    oppressor 
(Assyria). 

It  will  be  noted  in  the  above  summaries  that  in  the  first  case 
the  prophet  starts  with  oppression  within  Israel  itself,  relief  comes 
from  the  Chaldseans,  they  exceed  their  commission,  and  justice  is 
outraged  more  than  before ;  then  the  answer  comes  that  this  can- 
not last,  because  wickedness  cannot  endure  and  relief  will  surely 
come.  In  the  other  case  Israel  is  oppressed  by  an  outside  nation, 
and  relief  is  to  come  from  another  outside  nation. 

Both  views  are  beset  with  difficulties.  In  the  first  case,  in 
1:5,  the  raising  up  of  the  Chaldseans  is  looked  on  as  something 
almost  incredible,  yet  in  vss.  13-16  the  author  speaks  of  their 
treatment  of  conquered  nations,  and  the  moral  problems  involved, 
in  a  manner  that  seems  to  imply  that  he  and  his  countrymen  were 
well  acquainted  with  their  methods.  Again,  if  he  complains  of 
injustice  in  Israel  in  1:2-4,  how  can  he  consistently  complain  of 
the  injustice  of  those  called  to  avenge  this  injustice  in  Israel? 
Further,  the  subject  of  complaint  in  2:1  ought  to  be  the  same  as 
in  1:2-4,  but  according  to  the  first  view  it  is  not.  In  other 
words,  only  1:2-4  refers  to  Israel,  and  this  is  to  serve  as  a  sort 
of  introduction  to  a  prophecy  against  Babylon.  So  the  question 
arises  :  Why  speak  of  Israel's  oppression  of  each  other  at  all,  in  a 
prophecy  directed  against  the  Chaldseans?  In  addition,  the 
wicked  and  righteous  in  1:13  ought  to  be  the  same  as  in  1:2-4; 
whereas,  according  to  the  first  view,  the  wicked  and  the  righteous 
in  one  case  are  the  Chaldseans  and  Israelites,  and  in  the  other  the 
wicked  and  righteous  are  both  in  Israel  itself. 

Driver  gets  rid  of  a  part  of  these  difficulties  by  saying  that 
1:2-11  is  earlier  than  the  rest  of  the  prophecy,  the  rest  having 
been  written  after  the  Chaldseans  had  begun  devastating  the 
country. 

Biidde  maintains  that  the  pictures  of  1:12  sqq.  and  2:5  sgg. 
do  not  suit  the  Babylonians,  as  they  appear  in  history,  so  well  as 
the  Assyrians.  Davidson,  however,  claims  that  it  suits  the  one 
as  well  as  the  other. 

The  main  objections  raised  to  Budde's  theory  are:  (1)  Can 
the  misplacement  of  1:5-11  from  what  he  calls  their  original 
position  be  accounted  for?  (2)  Why,  in  a  prophecy  of  two 
chapters,  is  Assyria  not  named?  (3)  How  can  the  methods  of 
warfare  of  the  Chaldseans  have  become  so  well  known  at  the  time 


THE    STROPHIO    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  7 

Budde  places  the  prophecy  (626-621)?  (4)  Did  Assyria  at  this 
time  (626-621)  have  any  considerable  hold  on  the  western 
provinces?  If  not,  then  1:2-4  presents  a  greatly  exaggerated 
picture.  (5)  It  seems  hardly  probable  that  deification  of  means 
of  warfare  should  be  spoken  of  with  regard  to  two  nations. 

Budde  answers  (1)  by  saying  that  the  role  assigned  to  the 
Chaldseans  in  the  original  prophecy,  of  liberators  of  Israel  from 
Assyria,  seemed  so  little  verified  in  history  that  at  a  later  time, 
when  the  Chaldseans  had  become  the  oppressors,  an  editor  of 
the  book  attempted  to  remove  the  seeming  difficulty  by  making 
the  prophecy  refer  to  the  Chaldseans.  With  regard  to  (2)  it 
has  been  said  that  the  people  well  understood  whom  the  prophet 
had  in  mind,  but  it  was  impolitic  to  mention  names.  Budde 
disposes  of  (3)  by  saying  it  is  imaginative  like  Isa.  5:26-30. 
Yet  it  seems  as  realistic  as  vss.  12-17.  With  regard  to  (4)  it 
may  be  said  that,  while  Assyria  was  undoubtedly  greatly  weak- 
ened, yet,  in  a  period  of  change  and  doubt  as  to  the  final  issue  of 
the  struggle  to  overcome  its  adversaries,  its  representatives  might 
endeavor  to  conceal  the  signs  of  weakening  by  a  show  of  greater 
force.  Evidently,  if  we  put  the  prophecy  at  the  time  to  which 
Budde  assigns  it,  it  would  seem  that  Judah  must  have  been  sub- 
ject to  Assyria,  and  we  might  compare  with  this  the  readiness 
with  which  Josiah,  later,  goes  out  against  Necho  of  Egypt,  an 
enemy  of  Assyria.  Budde  disposes  of  (5)  by  saying  that  the 
last  line  of  vs.  11  goes  back  to  the  Assyrian,  and  thus  forms  a 
transition  to  2:5. 

On  the  whole,  the  arrangement  of  Budde  seems  to  present 
fewer  difficulties  than  that  of  the  MT.,  though  whether  one  can 
be  as  definite  as  he  is  with  regard  to  naming  the  oppressor  seems 
doubtful.  Professor  G.  A.  Smith,  as  stated  above,  follows  his 
arrangement  of  the  material,  but  does  not  venture  to  be  so  definite 
with  regard  to  the  identity  of  the  oppressor.  Because  of  the 
realistic  way  in  which  the  Chaldaeans  are  spoken  of,  betokening 
an  acquaintance  with  Chaldsean  warfare  hardly  probable  during 
the  Assyrian  supremacy,  he  suggests  Egypt  as  the  oppressor.  But 
with  our  present  knowledge  of  the  historical  situation,  as  he  says, 
it  seems  impossible  to  fix  definitely  on  the  oppressor.  However,  it 
seems  quite  probable  that  it  was  a  heathen  power  outside  of  Israel, 
rather  than  the  wicked  in  Israel.  Otherwise,  as  stated  above,  why 
should  a  prophet  try  to  comfort  his  people   by  introducing  a 


8  THE    STROPHIO    STRUCTUEE    OF    HABAKKUK 

prophecy  against  their  enemies,  with  a  short  plaint  of  only  three 
verses,  calling  for  vengeance  on  the  wicked  in  Israel  itself  ? 

As  it  has  no  essential  bearing  on  the  great  problem  of  1:5-11, 
and  its  position,  the  question  of  the  authenticity  of  the  "taunt 
songs"  has  been  deferred  until  after  that  matter  was  discussed. 
Stade  questioned  all  but  the  first  of  these  songs,  and  was  followed 
by  Cornill  and  Kuenen. 

The  second  is  questioned  because  it  cannot  well  be  said  of  the 
Chaldsean  (Budde's  Assyrian)  that  he  places  his  nest  on  high  to 
deliver  himself  from  evil.  But,  as  Davidson  says,  the  evil  need 
not  imply  present  danger,  but  prospective  or  possible  calamity. 

The  fourth  song,  it  is  said,  can  hardly  be  Habakkuk's,  because 
nothing  is  known  of  the  devastation  of  Lebanon  by  the  Chaldsean. 
Budde,  however,  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  Assyrians 
were  constantly  drawing  on  this  region  for  timber  to  carry  on 
their  building  ;  hence  it  is  thoroughly  appropriate. 

The  more  conservative  admit  that  there  is  more  ground  for 
questioning  the  third  and  fifth  "woes."  The  third,  because  it 
contains  reminiscences  of  other  passages,  viz.,  Mic.  3:10;  Jer. 
51:58,  and  Isa.  11:9.  Further,  it  has  been  questioned  on  the 
ground  that  it  repeats,  in  a  measure,  the  preceding  woe,  or,  at 
least,  the  preceding  presupposes  the  building  process  spoken  of 
here.  The  fifth  woe  is  questioned  because  it  treats  of  idolatry,  a 
subject  not  mentioned  elsewhere  in  the  book,  except  in  an  indirect 
way,  and  then  the  allusion  is  not  to  carved  images,  as  here.  This, 
coupled  with  the  fact  that  these  two  do  not  quite  correspond  in 
form  to  the  other  three,  renders  both  of  them  questionable,  to 
say  the  least. 

The  book  as  a  whole  has  not  been  considered  as  poetic,  though 
it  is  conceded  that  the  third  chapter  is  a  psalm,  and  hence  is  in 
poetic  form.  But  on  a  closer  examination  of  the  other  two  chap- 
ters we  find  the  characteristics  of  Hebrew  poetry,  for  in  these 
chapters  are  found  the  peculiarities  of  poetic  style,  viz.,  parallel- 
isms, archaic  and  poetic  forms,  alliterations,  unusual  words,  chi- 
asms, and  the  inverted  order  of  words,  as  well  as  the  rhythmical 
flow  of  the  language  in  a  definite  number  of  words  to  each  line. 
Further,  as  we  shall  see  later,  these  lines  may  be  arranged  in  a 
regular  scheme  of  strophes  for  each  section. 

Taking  up  the  matter  of  parallelism,  we  find  that  these  two 
chapters  (with  the  exception  of  prose  connecting  links)  may  be 


THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  9 

set  off  in  the  form  of  lines  of  approximately  the  same  length, 
these  lines  bearing  definite  relations  to  other  lines,  and  thus 
giving  rise  to  the  so-called  "parallelism  of  members."  The  three 
chief  classes  of  parallelism  are  represented  in  these  two  chapters, 
as  well  as  some  of  the  mofe  complex  forms  or  combinations.  Of 
the  synonymous  parallelisms  we  m&y  note  1 :  10,  lines  n  and  b; 
1:12a,  J);  lil'Sa,  h,  and  c,  d;  l:15o,  b;  2:lo,  b,  and  c,  d;  2:5c, 
d,  and  c,f.  Of  the  antithetic  the  most  marked  is  2:4a,  6,  and 
of  the  synthetic,  1:6a,  b,  and  c,  d;  1:10c,  dj  2:26,  c;  2:'6c,  d, 
and  2:9a,  b,  furnish  examples.  Of  the  complex  forms  we  may 
note  2:7,  where  the  first  two  lines  are  synonymously  parallel  in 
their  relation  to  each  other,  but  both  are  in  synthetic  relation  to 
the  third  line;  the  same  seems  to  be  true  of  1:9.  In  2:1  the 
first  two  lines  are  synonymous,  and  so  are  the  second  and  third, 
but  the  two  groups  are  synthetic  in  their  relation  to  each  other. 
Further,  the  number  of  synonymous  parallelisms  in  these  chap- 
ters (at  least  fourteen)  is  quite  at  variance  with  the  usage  of 
the  ordinary  prose  style  ;  in  prose  so  much  repetition,  instead  of 
emphasizing,  would  weaken  and  render  the  discourse  burdensome. 

Of  archaic  and  poetic  forms  the  following  are  worthy  of  note  : 
n;  1 : 9  and  15,  for  the  masculine  suffix  1 :  +n"n^  for  +nn^ ,  2: 17 ; 
T-b  ,  2:7,  a  poetical  form  so  frequently  used  in  the  Psalms;  'IT, 
used  as  a  relative,  1: 11,  a  form  used  only  in  poetry,  and  the  poetic 
'nib^  with  a  suffix  inbi^  ,  1:11,  this  being  the  only  case  of  its 
occurrence.  Then  of  the  alliterations  the  following  are  examples  : 
by'S  b3?3,  1:5;  ib'.^b  ,  1:6  and  2:6;  it3S';2^;  ,  ^m2 ,  1:7;  llTB 
Vj:"^2,   1:8;  T12  3?::2  ,   2:9,  and  DrA><  D^^rbu^ ,   2:18. 

As  uncommon  words  found  in  this  passage  we  may  note  : 
n-2"2,  1:9;  ti^tOniJ',  2:6;  rSiD ,  2:11;  "l^^J ,  2:15;  "pbp^p , 
2:16.  These  are  found  only  in  these  two  chapters  —  quite  an 
unusual  number  for  so  short  a  passage.  ni?Jj7J ,  1:15,  16, 
appears  elsewhere  only  in  Isaiah  (once),  and  there  in  the  form 
n"ib5"J  .  To  these  may  be  added  words  occurring  only  here  and 
in  the  poetical  books,  viz.,  IflD  ,  1:4;  pnlT^J  ,  1:10,  and  TJl^, 
2:5,  while  D'^*7"l  and  words  from  the  root  bp>  occur  only  here, 
in  the  poetical  books,  the  Song  of  Deborah,  and  Isaiah  (one  case 
of  each  in  the  last  two  named). 

Examples  of  the  chiastic  order  are  :  i:r?2  i^lH  ,1:7;  TZ'^Ei 
riT^SI ,  1:8;  >^in  lb  ,  1:9;  ^"bi^  HIH^ ,  1:12.  Note  the  same 
arrangement  of  phrases  in  1:13a,  6,  and  of  verbs  in  1:8  ;   1:15  ; 


10  THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK 

2:1,  etc.  Then,  closely  connected  with  the  chiastic  order,  and 
sometimes  dependent  upon  it,  is  the  unusual  order  of  words,  of 
which  we  have  a  number  of  examples  in  this  passage.  Let  it  suf- 
fice to  consider  the  order  of  the  substantive  subject  and  its  verb. 
In  prose,  with  the  exception  of  the  circumstantial  clause,  the  order, 
in  the  great  majority  of  cases,  is  :  verb,  substantive,  the  number  of 
instances  in  which  the  reverse  order  occurs  being  relatively  small. 
Take  some  examples  of  the  ratio  of  these  two  cases  in  some  pas- 
sages, i.  e.,  of  the  ratio  of  the  number  of  times  the  verb  precedes 
the  substantive  to  the  number  of  times  it  follows  the  substantive : 

Prayer  of  Solomon,  1  Kings  8 :  23-53, 

Book  of  Ruth  (exclusive  of  genealogy  at  close), 

Story  of  David  and  Groliath,  1  Sam.,  chap.  17, 

Farewell  address  of  Joshua,  Josh.  21 :  2-15, 

Story  of  Rebekah,  Gen.,  chap.  24,       - 

First  oration  of  Moses,  Deut.  1 : 6 — 4 :  40, 

Song  of  Deborah,  Judg.,  chap.  5,        - 

Song  of  Moses,  Deut.  33 : 1-43,      -  -  -  - 

Hab.,  chap.  3,  - 

Hab.,  chaps.  1,  2,  - 

Isa.,  chap.  5,   - 

Pss.  1-5,   ------- 

Taking  all  these  lines  of  evidence  into  consideration  we  have 
good  reasons  for  classing  these  two  chapters  as  poetry.  Then, 
granting  the  poetic  form  as  far  as  the  language  and  lines  are 
concerned,  the  question  remains :  If  poetic,  has  it  a  definite 
strophical  arrangement  of  the  material,  and  what  is  that  arrange- 
ment? In  other  words,  what  are  the  smaller  unities  that  go  to 
make  up  the  larger  unity  of  the  passage  or  of  the  parts  of  which 
it  is  composed  ?  For  the  solution  of  this  question  we  shall  follow 
the  arrangement  of  material  adopted  by  Professor  Budde  and 
Professor  G.  A.  Smith,  viz.,  1:2-4;  1:12—2:4;  1:5-11  ;  2:5-20. 

1.    Hab.  1:1-4;  1:12 — 2:4:    The  Plaint  and  the  Answer. 

&<^nDn  pipnn  nin  nir^^  xir^^n  (i) 

Ty^T\  &<bi    ^n:?ii23  nin--  hd:?^-!?  (2)  i 

TmT\  i<bi  cr:n  -j^bii^  p>"Ti5 

'XT-2)^  b7j3?i  -jij^  -Di^nn  nab  (3) 

2  Read  with  Syriac  ti'^DS  instead  of  ti'^DD  .  unless  with  Ewald,  Syntax,  %  122,  we  allow  a 
causative  force  for  t3''3n  •  Elsewhere  it  does  not  seem  to  have  the  meaning  "cause  to  see." 
LXX  apparently  read  tOISn  • 

3  ^l"!   irr^l  has  been  omitted  as  a  gloss,  inserted  to  explain  the  unusual  iilU"^  "n^l  • 


as 

14  to 

1 

as 

77  to 

6 

as 

61  to 

6 

as 

10  to 

1 

as 

37  to 

8 

as 

18  to 

7 

as 

23  to  13 

as 

8  to 

5 

as 

16  to 

7 

as 

17  to  10 

as 

16  to  13 

as 

5  to 

4 

THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  11 

nnin  r^isn  -p-b:?  (4)         ii 

bp:5?7j  t:2ir:a  't^ii^i 

mn-^  Dip-2  nni<  j^ibn  (i2a,6)  iii 
'm72n'  j<b  -iDnp  ^rb'^ 
3?n  nixTj  D^r;:?  nint:  (i3a,6) 
bDin  !}<b  b?j>-b&<  t:^3ni 

D^n.-in  t:^nn  n?:ib  (i3c,d)   iv 

D^n  ^jIj  m;j5  "rr^j^'ni  (i4) 
in  b^7j-Kb  ^:37jn5 

nbyn  HDnn  nbi  (i5)        v 

b^y^  n/2Tr^  -p-b:? 
inn7j:D73b  ^t:p^i  i^nnb  '"nni^  (i6a) 

ipbn  i^ir  n52ra  ^5  (I66)      vi 

nr^n  v^nn  p^n^  ""jD-b:?  (iv) 
bi7^n^-i^b  n^i3  jnnb 

♦  Wellhausen  for  "T^nDTS  reads  I'l'QD'KJ ;  cf.  vs.  13.  Nowack  suggests  ril"1313 .  But 
"iTlDlO  may  mean  "surround"  in  a  hostile  sense. 

5  The  "3~by  of  MT.  in  1.  4  seems  unnecessary,  as  the  expression  occurs  in  1.  1,  and 
seems  to  add  little  to  the  emphasis.    By  its  omission  the  measure  is  rendered  more  regular. 

6  We  probably  have  a  D^i^DD  "Ipn  in  the  riTQS  Xb  of  MT. 

7  The  latter  half  of  vs.  12  of  MT., 

nmo-'  n^Dinb  mil 

furnishes  a  premature  solution  of  the  problem,  and  breaks  the  connection  between  the  first 
half  of  vs.  12  and  vs.  13.  It  is  probably  due  to  a  later  hand ;  so  Wellhausen,  G.  A.  Smith, 
and  Nowack.    If  it  be  retained,  read  with  LXX  1~n3J  instead  of  "112  . 

8  The  MT.  has  IS'O'Q  at  close  of  second  line ;  LXX  and  Syriac  omit  it.  The  line  is  full 
without  it,  and  the  idea  of  comparative  guilt  does  not  seem  to  be  emphasized  elsewhere  in 
the  book. 

9  Perhaps  in  the  third  line  it  is  better  to  read  with  WeUhausen  and  Nowack,  following 
LXX,  waw  conjunctive  rather  than  consecutive.  WelUiauseu  and  Nowack  also  change  to 
mUy^l  and  refer  to  the  tyrant's  view  of  men,  i.  e.,  he  treats  them  as  fishes,  etc. ;  but  leaving 
it  in  the  second  person  it  continues  the  complaint ;  not  only  is  Yahweh  silent,  but  he  makes 
men  "  a  swarming  disorder,"  so  that  they  are  easily  preyed  upon. 

10  Omit  "D~by ,  as  it  appears  in  the  preceding  line  and  adds  no  strength  to  this  one. 
Besides,  the  line  is  over-full  without  it,  and,  further,  by  its  omission  1.  4  is  made  like  1.  2. 

11  With  Kautzsch  (HSAT.)  omit  H  from  before  "jD'by  in  1.  3,  and  T  from  before 
T^ign .  Both  may  have  arisen  from  dittography.  Giesebrecht,  Budde,  Rothstein,  Well- 
hausen, G.  A.  Smith,  and  Nowack  read  Dbl7n  in  1-  3,  but  Kautzsch's  emendation  is  simpler 
and  makes  a  smoother  passage.    Giesebrecht,  Kautzsch,  Wellhausen,  G.  A.  Smith,  and 


12  THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK 

^^^:fi!i.  ^r\^J2W2'hy  (2:i)     vii 

")^&^^1  nin^   ^DDn    (2:2a) 

ninbn-by  ij^ni  -pTn  nns  (26,  c)  viii 
in  sj^nip  -pn^  7)jb 
nri^b  -pTH  niy  ^n  (3a,  6) 

nTS^  ;}<bi  ypb  '*nnsn 

ib-nnn  n7jn7^n^  dj^  (3c)       ix 
nn5<^  ^5b  s^n^  ^^n-^D 
ia  iirsD  nn-j:^-&^b  ''bir  n:n  (4) 

The  writer  in  1:2  sg.  bemoans  the  wretched  condition  of  an 
oppressed  people.  He  expresses  his  thought  in  a  strophe  of  four 
lines  of  the  pentameter  movement  (secured  by  emending  a  line 
that  is  questioned  by  Nowack  and  others  on  entirely  different 
grounds  than  that  a  shorter  line  is  required  by  the  measure). 
This  pentameter  movement,  3  +  2,  has  been  called  the  Qlnah 
measure  by  Budde,  as  he  first  observed  it  in  the  book  of  Lamenta- 
tions ;  it  is  the  regular  form  used  in  the  lamentation  (Hebr.  Qinah) 
or  dirge.  Here  it  well  accords  with  the  thought  expressed  and 
seems  to  have  been  chosen  for  that  purpose,  for,  having  made  his 
complaint,  the  author,  in   dealing  with  the  details,  drops  into  a 

Nowack  read  "in'in  for  TQin  of  MT.  in  the  third  line.  All  but  Giesebrecht  avoided  the 
reading  12"in  in  vs.  16  because  "UHIIOD'Q  is  so  near  it.  Giesebrecht  reads  for  this  ^n"15''?  ' 
a  word  of  uncei-tain  meaning ;  cf.  Gen.  49  : 5.  The  difficulty  lies  in  the  fact  that  some  weapon 
seems  required  both  in  vss.  16  and  17.  But  it  is  just  as  well  to  leave  the  matter  indefinite  in 
a  poetical  description,  i.  e.,  general  rather  than  specific. 

'-"113213,  in  1.  2,  Wellhausen  connects  with  12D ;  others  with  TliJ  •  Ewald  reads 
"nSJ'Q  "citadel;"  Nowack  suggests  MDS'JO  as  being  in  accord  with  the  context;  Gesenius- 
Buhl  Dictionary  suggests  HifTS  . 

13  Read  with  Sjiriac  and  Targ.  ^Tm"!  rather  than  miCX-  Bredenkamp,  Wellhausen, 
Budde,  Kautzsch,  and  Nowack  follow  Syriac.  Davidson  says  it  would  be  as  well  to  change, 
but  thinks  it  is  not  absolutely  necessary. 

1*  Bredenkamp,  Budde,  Kautzsch,  Wellhausen,  and  Nowack  read,  with  the  LXX,  HIS'^I 
instead  of  HD'^T  of  the  MT.  So,  literally,  "sprout,"  or,  better,  "blossom,"  here  —  not  only 
shall  it  blossom  (or  sprout),  but  the  blossoming  shall  not  deceive ;  the  fruit  shall  come. 

'5  L.  3  is  rather  long;  besides,  there  seems  to  be  a  difficulty  with  the  text.  Syriac  has 
)]a^  (Hebr.  biy),  followed  by  Wellhausen  and  Nowack.  At  any  rate,  we  expect  a  sub- 
stantive as  the  counterpart  of  p'^'TJJ  in  next  line.  LXX  A.  has  vuxe^fvo/x^vov,  which 
suggests  Bredenkamp's  reading  ClbyiH;  LXX  O',  iav  VTroardXriTai  ovk  ei/doKei,  etc.  Vulg. 
has  incredulus.  Targ.:  "Behold  the  wicked  say,  all  this  shall  not  happen,  etc."  So, 
probably,  aa  above,  following  the  Syriac. 


THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  13 

different  measure,  which  is  maintained  throughout  this  division. 
From  this  point  on  the  movement  is  trimeter  or  a  close  approxi- 
mation to  the  same.  The  slight  variations  from  the  movement  are 
apparently  due  to  a  desire  to  make  the  form  correspond,  in  some 
measure,  to  the  thought,  whether  short,  concise,  and  emphatic, 
or  long  drawn  out,  though  the  longer  lines  in  some  cases  may  be 
due  to  the  exigencies  of  the  language,  the  writer  being  unable  to 
express  his  thought  in  the  usual  number  of  words.  But,  doubtless, 
some  of  the  long  lines  are  long  only  in  appearance,  as  some  of  the 
constructs  and  unemphatic  words  were  probably  considered  as  part 
of  the  following  words  for  accentual  purposes.  At  least  we  may 
infer  some  such  a  state  of  affairs  as  this,  since  the  great  majority 
of  lines  show  the  trimeter  movement.  This  is  accomplished  quite 
frequently  in  the  Masoretic  text  by  the  use  of  the  maqqeph. 
However,  these  maqqephs  are  only  traditional,  and  are  used  at 
times  where  the  measure  would  be  more  regular  without  them. 

But  to  return  to  the  strophes,  having  given  voice  to  an  outcry 
of  distress  in  the  tirst  strophe,  in  the  second  (vs.  4)  the  author 
treats  of  the  ethical  and  moral  results  of  so  much  unrequited 
oppression — great  moral  disorder  prevails.  (Here,  as  in  the 
following  strophes  of  this  division,  there  are  four  lines  to  the 
strophe.)  This  moral  disorder  prevalent  on  all  sides  raises  the 
question  in  the  prophet's  mind  whether  this  can  be  in  accord 
with  the  character  of  God  —  His  purity,  unchangeableness,  and 
utter  abhorrence  of  all  that  is  evil.  He  gives  expression  to  this 
thought  in  the  third  strophe,  1 :  12a,  &,'®  13a,  6.  Then  in  the  fourth 
strophe  (vss.  13c,  14)  he  further  gives  utterance  to  his  perplexity 
in  the  presence  of  the  facts  of  experience.  God,  being  so  pure 
and  just,  how  is  it  that  He  seems  unconcerned  in  the  presence  of 
violence,  has  even  made  men,  such  as  they  are,  helpless  in  the 
presence  of  the  oppressor  ?  Passing  from  the  idea  of  the  helpless- 
ness of  man  before  the  tyrant,  the  prophet  pictures,  in  the  fifth 
strophe  (vss.  15,  16a),  the  exultant  tyrant  who  has  dragged  down 
men  and  nations,  and  who  then  deifies  the  means  by  which  this 
was  accomplished,  or,  perhaps  better,  the  might  which  made  use 
of  the  means.  Thereupon  the  reason  why  the  tyrant  does  this 
suggests  itself  to  the  mind  of  the  writer  —  a  reason  he  gives  in 
the  fifth  strophe  (vss.  166,  17). 

'6  It  will  be  noted  that  if  vs.  12c,  d  be  retained  here,  between  126  and  13,  the  lines  mar 
the  picture  —  the  prophet  begins  to  speak  of  the  attributes  of  God,  then  interrupts  himself 
to  say  that  someone  is  ordained  for  judgment,  and  then  returns  to  contemplate  the  attri- 
butes of  God.    Hence  omit  vs.  12c,  d  with  Wellhausen,  G.  A.  Smith,  and  Nowack. 


14  THE    STROPHIO    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK 

The  prophet  has  now  stated  his  plea,  and  there  is  a  pause, 
during  which  he  forms  a  resolution  as  to  what  attitude  he  shall 
take  in  regard  to  the  matter.  He  expresses  this  resolution  in  the 
seventh  strophe  (2:1) — whatever  may  be  the  outcome,  he  will 
watch  and  wait.  While  in  this  attitude  of  expectancy,  a  voice  is 
heard  bidding  him  inscribe  the  expected  answer  plainly  on  tablets 
so  that  all  may  read,  for  the  fulfilment  of  the  answer  is  certain, 
though  not  immediate  (Strophe  VIII,  2: 25-36) .  (The  prose  intro- 
duction of  vs.  3  may  not  have  been  in  the  original  poem.)  At 
the  close  of  the  eighth  strophe,  it  was  suggested  that,  though  the 
vision  might  not  be  fulfilled  immediately,  it  should  certainly  come 
to  fruition.  In  the  first  two  lines  of  the  ninth  strophe  (2:3c,  4) 
he  is  admonished  to  be  patient,  and  then,  in  the  third  and  fourth, 
follows  the  answer  to  the  prophet's  plaint  in  the  form  of  a  general 
principle  :  "The  soul  of  the  wicked  is  not  upright  (level,  natural, 
or  normal)  in  him  (and  from  the  nature  of  the  case  cannot 
endure),  but  the  righteous  shall  live  by  his  faithfulness,"  i.  e., 
his  loyalty  and  steadfastness  toward  God  and  right. 

The  variations  from  the  trimeter  movement  in  the  division 
already  considered  are  not  very  marked.  Among  the  long  lines 
may  be  noted  the  third  line  of  1:4,  perhaps  to  emphasize  the 
weariness  of  the  continued  oppression,  and  something  of  the  same 
idea  must  be  back  of  the  second  line  of  vs.  15,  while  the  first  of 
vs.  16  is  drawn  out  as  a  sort  of  echo  of  the  long  line  in  vs.  15. 
The  short  line,  vs.  16c,  belongs  to  a  class  of  parallelisms  very 
common  in  the  Psalms — e.  g.,  2:11;  9:9;  12:3,  etc. —  the  first 
line  makes  a  full  statement,  and  this  statement  is  given  in  a 
different  form,  with  fewer  words,  in  the  second  line  ;  in  each  case 
there  is  an  ellipsis  of  some  one  element  of  the  parallelism  in  the 
second  line.  In  addition,  note  the  short,  concise  lines  in  2:  la,  b, 
expressing  vigorous  determination. 

2.    Hah.  1:5-11:    An  Address  to  the  Tyrant. 

lt:^3ni  ''rriza  i.^n  (i:5)      i 

17  Instead  of  D'^ISi^  of  MT.,  read  with  LXX  A,  followed  by  Kautzsch,  Rothstein,  and 
Nowack,  Qinji.  Syriac  here  has  "proud;"  Arabic,  "negligent."  However,  Vulg.,  Targ., 
Aq.  Sym.,  and  Theod.  follow  MT.  But  the  reading  of  LXX,  A,  is  mote  definite  in  view  of  the 
threat,  and  the  occurrence  of  '^y^  in  vs.  13;  cf.  also  2:5. 


THE    STEOPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  15 

D^iir^n-n^5  ny^2  ^D;n  "D  (6)        ii 
lb-5<'b  ini55ir?j  nir-ib 

«in   "^-1131  D^i<   (7) 
rciC   D''^?^-^  ''ibp   (8a-d)    III 

bi5«b  irn  nirjs  1S3?"  m      iv 

5<li^  c-^nb  nbD  (9) 
n'2^ip  DH^rs  ''n-^rj 

cbpn-  a^5b7::n  ^\sini  (lo)       v 

lb  pnir-2  D":Tni 
pr^'z^  -'-i^in-i-bsb  !*in 

nnri  "inb  qbn  t«  (H) 
inbxb  iriD  it  nia^^i 

18  Wellhausen  questions  ^irTJSS  and  loaves  it  untranslated. 

19  LXX  apparently  read  HXID  <  eTn.<f>a.vf)%. 

20  LXX  for  riii'lU  has  \TJfi,aa  ;  Syriac,  "  vision." 

21  With  Wellhausen  omit  "]  before  *Op ;  so  Kautzsch.    Also  omit  at  the  beginning  of  1. 3. 
2!  The  Gesenius-Buhl  Dictionary  gives  the  two  meanings  for  TCIS  •  i.e.,  "horseman" 

and  "riding  horse;"  so  KOnig,  in  Lehrgebaude  der  hebr.  Sprache,  Vol.  II,  Part  1,  p.  89;  for 
the  meaning  "  war-horses  or  chargers  "  cf.  Joel  2:4;  Ezek.  27 :  14,  and  Isa.  21 : 7,  9.  The  latter 
seems  quite  conclusive  in  favor  of  "riding  horses,"  yet  some  question  it.  Schwally,  ZATW., 
Vol.  VIII,  p.  191,  questions  whether  TU"|S  ever  means  a  horse  of  any  kind.  Still,  it  would 
seem  strange  to  use  the  same  word  with  different  meanings  in  such  close  proximity  one  to 
the  other.  One  wants  to  read  the  first  "  horsemen  "  and  for  the  second  "  chariots,"  but  it  is 
doubtful  if  TCS  will  allow  it  for  the  first,  and  there  is  no  manuscript  authority  for  the 
second.  Most  of  the  later  commentators  with  the  LXX  omit  one  11'113'13 ,  saying  the  other 
arose  by  dittography ;  in  that  case  one  of  the  verbs  is  omitted.    Evidently  the  text  is  corrupt. 

^^n'Qji'Q  in  vs.  9  is  doubtful.  Tlie  word  is  generally  taken  to  mean  "striving," 
" endeavor,"  Arabic  a~^  ;  c/.  Greek  fcd/iw ;  Syriac  has  "aspect,"  "appearance."  Nowack 
and  Wellhausen  leave  the  word  untranslated. 

2*  With  Kautzsch  read  waw  conjunctive,  if  original  reading  is  not  perfect  consecutive  ; 
so  in  vs.  10  in  following  strophe. 

25  The  waw  at  the  beginning  of  1.  1  might  be  omitted ;  at  least,  the  English  idiom  does 
not  require  that  it  be  translated. 

26  "iS^Tfl  apparently  feminine  here  and  in  Isa.  17  : 3 ;  cf.  BOttcher,  §  877, 1.  Hitzig  thinks 
it  stands  for  'yS.'yQ  T^y  here ;  cf.  1  Sam.  6 :  18. 

S'i  Read  inb  i  a  slight  variation  from  WeUhausen's  correction,  in  place  of  nil  of  text. 
Numerous  other  readings  have  been  suggested.  But  none  are  very  satisfactory ;  the  above 
is  given  with  hesitancy.  The  use  of  ^"yS  in  this  line  is  unusual,  too ;  probably  the  text  is 
corrupt.    For  the  use  of  the  perfect  after  TX  cf.  Gesenius-Buhl,  Dictionary^  under  Ti?  • 


16  THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK 

The  second  division,  1:5-11,  may  be  considered  as  an  address 
to  the  oppressors,  threatening  them  with  violence  for  their  deeds, 
though  some  would  have  us  take  1:6-11  as  the  message  to  be 
inscribed  on  the  tablets  rather  than  vs.  4  of  chap.  2  (vs.  5  of 
chap.  1  being  taken  as  an  interpolation  rendered  necessary  by  the 
transposition  of  this  section  from  its  original  position  to  its  present 
place  in  the  Massoretic  text).  In  that  case  they  would  consider 
the  announcement  of  2:4,  the  enunciation  of  a  great  moral  prin- 
ciple, given  for  the  uncertain  interval  before  the  facts  are  realized 
in  history.  One  very  serious  objection  to  this  view  is  that  1:6-11 
would  make  a  rather  long  inscription  for  the  busy  man,  "running" 
(c/.  2:2)  hither  and  thither,  to  read.  So  it  would  seem  better 
to  take  2:4  as  the  inscription  (not  quite  so  short  and  striking, 
perhaps,  as  Isaiah's  inscription,  Isa.,  chap.  8,  yet  terse  enough 
to  attract  attention);  then  the  whole  passage,  1:5-11,  is  the 
prophet's  message  of  relief  to  the  oppressed,  perhaps  delivered 
later  as  an  unfolding  of  the  message  inscribed. 

This  section  is  not  so  regular  in  its  strophic  arrangement  as 
the  one  already  treated.  There  are  twenty-four  lines,  and  the 
flow  of  thought  in  these  determines  in  favor  of  the  division  into 
strophes  of  4  +  6  +  4  +  4-|-6  lines,  or,  deleting  vs.  5,  four  strophes 
of  6-|-4  +  4  +  6  lines  —  quite  symmetrical,  to  be  sure,  but  1 : 6  does 
not  attach  itself  very  readily  to  2:4,  while  it  does  to  1:5;  other- 
wise the  strophic  structure  would  argue  strongly  in  favor  of 
throwing  out  1:5.  Hence  it  will  be  as  well  to  retain  vs.  5  as 
an  introductory  strophe.  This  strophe  of  four  trimeter  lines 
announces  to  the  oppressors  that  God  is  about  to  do  a  work  that 
will  astonish  them,  a  work  that  seems  incredible,  in  view  of 
present  conditions.  How  this  section  is  connected  with  that 
already  considered  can  only  be  inferred  from  this  opening  of  the 
address.  Possibly  after  the  people  have  had  time  to  ponder  over 
the  inscription,  and  have  become  inquisitive  about  it,  the  prophet 
comes  forward  and  in  a  dramatic  manner  addresses  the  tyrants 
who  are  supposed  to  be  before  him. 

The  remainder  of  the  section  up  to  vs.  11  contains  the 
announcement  of  that  which  is  to  be  the  cause  for  astonishment. 
The  next  strophe  of  six  lines.  No.  II  (1:6,  7)  announces  who  is 
to  appear  as  the  avenger  of  present  wrongs,  and  gives  a  charac- 
terization of  the  coming  Chaldfean — bitter,  hasty,  covetous, 
inspiring  terror,  imperious.      Then  the  third  strophe  of  four  lines 


THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  17 

[l:8a-d)  apparently  describes  the  rapid  approach  of  cavalry  and 
baggage  train,  while  the  fourth,  also  of  four  lines  (vss.  8e,  9) 
indicates  the  object  the  Chaldsean  has  in  view,  and  the  avidity 
with  which  he  pursues  it.  Following  this  is  the  fifth  strophe  of 
six  lines  (vss.  10,  11),  describing  the  ease  with  which  the  Chal- 
daean  carries  on  his  operations,  and,  in  the  last  line,  probably 
returning  to  the  oppressor,  who,  by  deifying  his  might,  has 
brought  on  himself  guilt,  and  hence  doom. 

If  we  were  to  argue  merely  from  the  standpoint  of  strophic 
arrangement,  we  might  decide  to  throw  out  the  section  1:5-11 
entirely,  as  Wellhausen  does  on  the  ground  that  it  does  not  fit 
logically  after  1:4,  but  in  the  same  manner  we  might  throw  out 
2:5-20,  as  there  is  no  return  to  the  four-line  strophe  in  that  sec- 
tion. Again,  it  has  been  urged,  against  the  assumption  that  the 
two  sections  already  considered  are  by  the  same  author,  that  there 
are  too  many  parallels  in  the  two  sections.  May  it  not  be  that 
the  artist  makes  use  of  these  parallels  to  accentuate  his  message  : 
as  the  oppressor  has  done  to  others,  so  shall  he  himself  be  treated, 
or  even  with  greater  severity? 

There  are  no  very  long  lines  in  the  second  section.  The 
second  line  of  vs.  5  is  short  and  alliterative,  and  so  is  the  third 
line  of  vs.  8,  evidently  so  chosen  to  intensify  the  impression  to  be 
made  on  the  hearers.  Otherwise,  most  of  the  lines  are  quite 
regular,  and  call  for  no  special  notice. 

5.    Hab.  2:5-20:    The  Downfall  of  the  Tyrant. 

TjZL  '']:;^_^   -5<1    (2:5)         I 

ynir^  5<bi  nr^s  j^ini 

Q-i^n-bD  rbx  -c^^^i 

nr2:?n-bs  rbiK  'pp^i 

28  This  correction  is  somewhat  doubtful,  especially  since  "J"]"!  is  represented  neither  in 
the  Greek  nor  in  the  Syriac  version.  Syriac :  "A  foolhardy  and  covetous  man  is  insatiable," 
etc.  LXX:  "  The  haughty  and  contemptuous  is  a  man  wandering  about."  Vulg. :  "Quomodo 
vinum  potantem  decepit  sic  vir  superbus."  etc.  Bredenkamp  and  Giesebrecht,  independently, 
emended  thus  :  l^XS   DSST  ;  tbey  are  followed  by  Budde. 

29  Read  with  Wellhausen  after  Syriac  nTl'^  instead  of  HID"^ ;  Syriac  translates  both 
this  and  y^TC  of  1-  3  by  the  same  verb,  v^  "^w  ;  Vulg.  translates :  "  he  shall  not  be  honored." 
Targ.,  first  two  lines :  "  Woe  to  the  robber,  a  man  who  is  not  able  to  quiet  his  desire,"  etc., 
perhaps  suggesting  Wellhausen's  conjecture,  noted  below  (p.  20,  note  43). 


18  THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK 

1^5125'^  bwi2  rhy  Dbi  nbi<  i<ibn  (6a,  6) 
ib-xb  nnn^an  "in  (6c,  d)    ii 

7S"j:d  v^ip^  yns  i^ibn  (?) 

l^b  nic":;7-2b  n^^ni 
D^nn  D^ij  nibir  nn&^-^i  (8) 
Dr^y  ^n^-bD  "jibiz:" 

Y^5<-crni  nii<  ^12112 
ra  "niL^-bji  n^'np 

in^nb  >n  y::n  y::n  "in  (9)       iii 

l:p    DiTjn    Q-iiu^ 

>n-cp:j  b^ijnb 
-n^nb  n^n  nis:?"  (lo) 
D"nn  n"7jy  ''ni:ip 
"jirs:  5<tiini 
pyin  n^p7^  p5<-"S  (11) 

D^7j-in  -1^:?  n:n  "in  (i2)      iv 
nbi>'n  n"ip  -diit'I 
ni^^nis  nin"  nx-a  '^nan  u^ibn  (i3) 

^^-^12  D":jy  VT^I 

isr  p"T"nn  D"7-2^<bi 

sota^tSSy,  air.  \ey.  Cf.  tD^!?  "to  pledge;"  Arab.  ^O^aO  "to  hold  fast,  confirm,"  so, 
perhaps,  a  mass  of  pledges  ;  for  formation  cf.  "Ti"l3D  "  a  heavy  rain,"  Prov.  27  :  15 ;  Ti'lSTE'  i 
Jer.  43 :  10.  Some,  following  Hieronymus,  have  taken  it  as  two  separate  words,  and  translate 
"  thick  clay  ;"  Syriac,  "  a  thick  mass  of  dirt  or  mire."  But  this  does  not  suit  the  parallelism 
as-well  as  "a  mass  of  pledges."  LXX,  "Who  makes  heavy  his  collar  (yoke'?)  fitting  closely" 
(LXX  in  vs.  7,  "those  biting  him  ;"  vs.  8,  Targ.  adds  to  refrain  "  and  of  Jerusalem"). 

"  TT53~ny  breaks  the  connection  if  retained  between  11. 1  and  2  above ;  so  place  as  1.  3. 

32  LXX  and  Syriac,  followed  by  G.  A.  Smith  and  Nowack,  read  second  singular  masculine 
perfect  of  "Tip;  then  following  line  will  be  circumstantial,  "at  the  same  time  sinning," 
etc. ;  cf.  Green,  §  309,  la ;  Ewald,  §  3416,  c ;  Driver,  Hebrew  Tenses,  §  161. 

33Q1g3,  aTT.  \€y.=  (perhaps)  "beam;"  Syriac,  "nail"  or  "peg;"  LXX  A,  a  "worm" 
or  "beetle;"  Aq.  fid^a  e/c  ^tiXov;  S.  <rvvde<TfW$  oiKodo/ji^s ;  Targ.,  "a  piece  of  wood."  In  the 
Mishna  the  word  means  "  a  building  stone."    GrStz  would  read  here,  DIES'??  Vy  • 

3iRead,  with  Syriac,  Vulg.,  and  LXX,  HSn ,  instead  of  (1371  ■  Kautzsch  makes  a 
hexameter  of  1.  3  by  adding,  conjecturally,  '^inbS  •  Syriac  for  11.  3,  4,  and  .5  has  :  "  These 
things,  all  of  them,  are  from  the  Lord  All-powerful,  the  nations  arc  stirred  up  as  a  furnace, 
and  peoples  labor  in  vain." 


THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  19 

^nyn  np"jj7^  ^in  (i5)       v 

Tn^-^  -pbp  n>-Ti:i  (16) 
-jcr  -irzb  c-jn  ^d  (H) 

yi^-CTjni   D155   ^12112 

n::^pn  -pb  n-^x  rn  (i9)      vi 

07211  pu^b  ni:? 
5<in-n;n  mr  '\><in 

ij^pn  7^^  nn-bsi 

"bc3  b^yin  n-i  (18) 

in:2^  ibcs  ^5 

^pir  mtji  nrc:2 

rby  *'i^^^  nt2n  ^d 

n^7jbi<  D"b"bi<  nrj33?b 

TvU-p  bi^nn  nm^i  (20) 

■pj^n-bD  r]S72  en 

35  LXX  has  o^Toi/s  for  Qi . 

36  L.  2  of  the  strophe  is  probably  corrupt,  nor  do  the  versions  help  much ;  however, 
Wellhausen  suggests  the  reading  given  above,  also  the  change  of  QH  to  1 . 

3T  Perhaps  the  plural  form  of  the  noun  might  have  been  retained.  Cf.  Kautzsch's 
'*  zeige  deine  Vorhaut "  in  the  following  verse. 

38  On  the  whole,  it  is  better  to  read,  with  Wellhausen,  after  LXX,  byiH .  instead  of 
b'^yn  of  MT. ;  then  1.  4  is,  in  a  sense,  parallel  to  1.  2,  and  by  a  transposition,  evidently 
required  logically,  11. 1  and  4  run  parallel  to  each  other.  In  the  same  way  11.  3  and  6  are 
rendered  parallel. 

3Sa  Read  "]  instead  of  "j  with  LXX. 

39  n  in  !•  3  is  omitted  before  XIH  to  avoid  hiatus  (Ewald,  Syntax,  §  3246). 

«  'CJIEn  in  1.  4  is  doubtful ;  after  analogy  of  TflS  in  1  Kings  6 :  10,  perhaps,  "  overlaid." 

*i  If  vs.  18  is  not  a  later  addition,  it  should  come  after  vs.  19,  i.  e.,  after  the  woe  has 

been  pronounced.    Stade  calls  vs.  18  (U.  &-10)  the  pious  ejaculation  of  a  reader;  cf.  ZATW., 

1884,  pp.  18-20.    Rothstein,  Studien  und  Kritiken,  1894,  says  it  rounds  off  the  thought  of  vs. 

19,  so  makes  it  follow  vs.  19,  as  above. 

*2In  1.  9  omit  one  form  of  "IJ^T  and  point  the  other  as  a  participle  with  a  suffix,  with 
Wellhausen  and  Nowack.    One  form  probably  arose  by  dittography. 


20  THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OP    HABAKKUK 

The  third  division,  2:5-20,  consists,  in  the  main,  of  trimeter 
lines,  the  variation  from  this  measure  being  slight,  as  in  the 
divisions  already  discussed.  This  division,  in  the  main,  like  the 
first,  has  the  oppressor  for  its  subject,  but  treated  from  a  difPerent 
point  of  view.  Here  there  is  an  exultant  note  running  through 
the  section  —  a  feeling  that  the  oppressor  is  soon  to  be  over- 
thrown. This  feeling  of  exultancy  breaks  out  in  the  so-called 
"taunt  songs,"  of  which  there  are  five  ;  these,  with  an  introductory 
strophe  of  six  lines,  2:5,  in  which  the  author  moralizes  on  the 
action  of  the  tyrant  in  general,  constitute  the  whole  section. 

The  strophic  arrangement  in  this  section  is  more  complex 
than  in  the  first,  but  still  very  clearly  indicated  by  the  introduc- 
tory word  in  case  of  the  "taunt  songs,"  and,  as  there  is  only  one 
other  strophe,  that  can  easily  be  set  ofP.  But  when  we  come  to 
the  authenticity  of  the  section,  that  is  a  matter  not  so  easily  dis- 
posed of.  It  was  stated  above  that  Stade  attributes  only  the 
introductory  strophe  and  the  first  taunt  song  to  Habakkuk.  But 
perhaps  this  is  too  sweeping  a  statement.  Others  of  the  "taunt 
songs"  show  close  relation  both  in  structure  and  thought  to  the 
first  (Strophe  II),  and  one  other  (Strophe  V),  like  the  first,  has 
a  refrain  following  it.  The  fourth  strophe  (vss.  12-14)  is  con- 
sidered doubtful  by  Professor  G.  A.  Smith  and  others,  as  it 
seems  to  be  a  composite  of  three  other  passages,  viz.,  Mic.  3:10; 
Jer.  51:8,  and  Isa.  11:9,  though  this  might  be  earlier  than  some 
of  them.  Professor  Smith  also  thinks  the  sixth  strophe  (vss.  18, 
19,  20)  is  too  much  like  the  language  of  the  later  prophets  to  be 
Habakkuk's  ;  in  this  view  he  is  supported  by  many  others  ;  in 
fact,  but  few  of  the  latest  commentators  maintain  that  Habakkuk 
was  the  author  of  this  strophe. 

Before  discussing  further  the  authenticity  of  these  "taunt 
songs"  let  us  consider  their  form  and  content.  As  stated  above, 
the  introductory  strophe  has  six  lines  in  which  the  writer  muses 
over  the  rapacity  of  the  tyrant,  and  this,  if  our  interpretation  of 
the  last  line  in  1:5  be  the  correct  one,  attaches  itself  in  a  manner 
to  the  final  thought  there,  and  also  leads  up  to  the  outburst  of 
the  prophet  in  "taunt  songs"  against  the  oppressor."" 

*3  The  beginning  of  this  first  (introductory)  strophe  is  attended  by  a  difficulty  in  the 
text  which  it  seems  almost  impossible  to  clear  up.  Wellhausen  sees  in  it  a  mutilated  l^n  < 
and  so  calls  it  another  "taunt  song"  or  "woe,"  but  it  does  not  correspond  in  form  to  the 
other  "  woes,"  and,  if  the  present  text  is  correct,  the  woes  are  not  expected  until  after  vs.  66. 

*♦  Ruben,  who  does  not  follow  Budde,  after  a  series  of  interesting  emendations  (in  the 
Jewish  Quarterly  Review,  April,  1899,  pp.  448-55),  makes  the  whole  of  the  second  chapter  taka 


THE    STBOPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  21 

The  first  of  the  "taunt  songs,"  Strophe  II  (vss.  6c-8,  the 
first  part  of  vs.  6  being  a  prose  introduction),  consists  of  eight 
lines  approximately  of  the  trimeter  measure,  and  has  for  its  sub- 
ject the  one  who  increases  his  wealth  by  spoiling  others,  threat- 
ening him  with  a  like  spoliation.  This  eight-lined  strophe  is 
followed  by  a  refrain  of  two  lines  ;  the  same  refrain  occurs  also 
after  the  fifth  strophe;  indeed,  it  has-been  suggested  that  origi- 
nally the  other  "taunt  songs"  were  followed  by  the  same  refrain. 
This  "woe"  (Strophe  II)  may  have  its  lines  divided  thus  :  3  +  3 
-(-  2.  Further,  the  woe  is  pronounced  in  the  first  group,  the 
oppressor  is  addressed  in  the  second,  and  the  third  is  introduced 
by  ^3 .  This  description  of  form  and  number  of  lines  also  applies 
to  the  third  strophe  (vss.  9-11),  treating  of  covetousness  or 
self-aggrandizement,  and  the  vanity  of  building  projects  and 
other  public  works ;  and  also  to  the  fifth  strophe  (vss.  15-17), 
dealing  with  the  tyrant's  contemptuous  treatment  of  conquered 
kings  and  prostrate  princes. 

Turning  to  the  remaining  "woes"  or  "taunt  songs,"  we  find 
that  the  fourth  strophe  (vss.  12-14),  dealing  with  him  who 
carries  on  building  projects  and  public  works  by  means  of  forced 
service,  also  has  eight  lines,  but  these  lines  are  arranged  in  a 
different  manner  from  those  in  the  second,  third,  and  fifth. 
Instead  of  3  +  3  +  2  we  have  2  +  3  +  3,  and  there  is  no  direct 
address  made  to  the  oppressor,  as  in  the  other  three  "woes."  So 
in  the  sixth  strophe  (vss.  18-20),  which  deals  with  the  folly  of 
idolatry,  there  is  a  difference  of  arrangement.  To  make  the  ""in 
stand  at  the  beginning  we  should  probably  make  vs.  18  follow 
vs.  19,  as  the  verse  cannot  be  connected  logically  with  the  pre- 
ceding strophe.  Then  we  have  a  strophe  of  ten  lines,  with  the 
groups  2  +  3  +  3  +  2,  with  the  two  lines  following  as  a  sort  of 
antiphon.  Here,  too,  there  is  no  direct  address  to  a  tyrant ;  in 
fact,  there  is  nothing  said  of  a  tyrant,  nor  of  oppression.  The 
whole  strophe  deals  with  a  subject  hardly  touched  upon  by  the 
prophet,  and  hence  probably  belonging  to  a  later  time.  The 
poetic  arrangement  also  argues  in  favor  of  a  later  authorship. 
In  the  case  of  the  fourth  strophe  the  form  argues  somewhat  also 
in  favor  of  a  later  addition.  This,  in  conjunction  with  the  evi- 
dence brought  forward  above,  and,  in  addition,  the  fact  that  the 

the  form  of  a  strophe  (vss.  1-8)  and  antistrophe  (vss.  9-17),  followed  by  an  opode  (vss.  18-20). 
But,  to  obtain  a  logical  order  for  the  strophe,  he  makes  some  rather  questionable  changes 
of  the  text.    On  the  whole,  the  smaller  divisions  seem  simpler. 


22  THE    STROPHIC    STEUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK 

last  part  of  the  third  strophe  presupposes  the  building  processes 
spoken  of  in  the  fourth,  renders  the  fourth  quite  doubtful. 

The  logical  connection  in  these  woes,  naturally,  is  not  very 
close.  Taking  the  three  "taunt  songs"  that  probably  belong  to 
Habakkuk,  the  tyrant  is  treated  first  as  a  spoiler  and  then  threat- 
ened with  spoiling  ;  in  the  third  strophe  the  woe  is  pronounced 
upon  him  because  he  hopes  to  make  his  house  secure  by  heaping 
up  these  unjust  gains ;  here  even  the  very  buildings  he  has 
erected  must  tell  the  story  of  his  wrongs.  Then  in  the  fifth 
strophe  the  tyrant  is  denounced  as  severely  for  his  treatment  of 
the  conquered  princes  as  he  was  in  the  other  two  for  his  treat- 
ment of  the  workmen. 

The  measure  in  this  section  is  not  quite  so  regular  as  in  the 
other  two,  but  in  the  main  is  trimeter.  Of  long  lines  we  may 
note  the  first  line  of  Strophe  III,  pronouncing  the  woe,  and  the 
long  line  (No.  3)  in  Strophe  IV,  where  the  question  arises 
whether  the  last  word  ought  to  be  omitted.  Of  the  short  lines 
we  note  TTC'l^ ,  an  emphatic  pause  in  the  second  strophe ;  also 
in  the  second  line  of  the  following  verse  a  line  like  that  in  1 :  16c. 
treated  above.  The  short  line  in  the  third  strophe  (vs.  9c)  is  a 
circumstantial  clause  placed  here  abruptly  to  emphasize  the  idea 
intended  to  be  conveyed.  The  irregularities  of  the  lines,  in  the 
strophes  whose  authenticity  is  questioned,  do  not  call  for  any 
special  mention. 

3.    Hah.  3:1-19:  Prayer  of  Habakkuk. 

nir:*^  bs?  5<^nDn  pipnnb  nbsn  (3:i) 

-jy7J125   ^n>'7J12:   nin*'    (3:2)         I 

■jbys  n^n^  ^t^ao^ 
in^^n  D^Dir  nnpn 

^^in^  'p^T\'n  nibn  (3)        ii 
nbc  -ps^s-in^a  lunpi 

♦5  Ruben  says  the  second  D"'3'tt5  21p3  in  vs.  2  should  probably  be  replaced  by  Si3Sl 
nyri;  c/.  LXX:  ev  rf  irapeivai  rbv  KOLipbv. 

*6  Nowack  would  read,  with  the  LXX,  yi^PI  instead  of  y^Tin  of  MT.  But  the  paral- 
lelism is  just  as  good  with  pointing  of  MT.  Beginning  with  1.  2,  the  LXX  has  :  "  I  considered 
Thy  works  and  was  astonished;  in  the  midst  of  two  beasts  (?)  (or  lives  [?])  (fiiwv)  Thou 
shalt  be  known."    Syriac  :  "  In  the  midst  of  the  years  of  life,"  etc. 


y 


THE    STROPHIO    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  23 

nin  n^J2^  ncs 
n^"^n  ^i^d  *'iri3Di  (4) 

^^^n^  -jb^  TDsb  (5)       ni 
rbrob  ''qirn  &^2^i 
v-nj^  ''j-fZ^^  -i7jy  (6) 
u^Tj  ^n^i  n«n 

lb  nb"i3>  niibn 
■jiciD  ^bn«  ^n^j^i  -p!?^  ''^nnin  (7)       iv 

n'ln^  mn  ^^D^nnnn  (s) 
-j"DiD-by  nnsn  ^D 

*^  Read  in!\D  with  the  versions  (instead  of  nrO  )  I  so  Nowack. 

*8  For  D"'3"lp  in  sense  of  "  rays,"  cf.  Exod.  34 :  29.    Syriac  seems  to  have  read  rT'^lp  • 

^'IT^TO  "from  his  side;"  so  Wellhausen,  Nowack,  Reinke.    Vulg.  seems  to  have  read 

50  LXX  (A.,  2.,  Aq.)  and  Syriac  read  QiCI  in  last  line  ;  so  Wellhausen  and  Nowack  ;  but 
■Vulg.  follows  MT.,  which  seems  as  well  in  a  poetical  description.  LXX  renders  the  line 
thus  :  "And  He  made  love  (or  loving)  {dyd7rr](XLv)  tlie  power  of  His  might." 

51  LXX  vocalized  "^31  "word  ;"  bettor  as  in  MT. 

52  LXX  translated  riU51  in  !•  2  by  iredLa.  Reinke  suggests  that  LXX  must  have  read 
D'^BTD-  Syriac  for  Cl'ttl''^  l»as  "death;"  so  Vulg.  In  Deut.  32:24  it  is  a  sickness  or  disease 
of  some  kind;  Kimhi  makes  it  a  "burning  disease."  Sinker  translates:  "lightnings." 
Parallelism  requires  a  disease. 

53  Read  with  Wellhausen  JiriTDII ;  cf.  Job.  30 :  22  and  LXX,  iaoKeidT).  Kautzsch  and 
Nowack  read  tSISTO^T-  This,  or  Wellhauseu's  conjecture,  might  do,  but  tlie  latter  form  is 
not  found,  while  the  former  is.  Sinker  thinks  there  must  be  a  root  ITQ .  At  any  rate,  it 
can  hardly  be  from  "ITQ ,  whose  pi'el  is  used  meaning  "measure,"  for  it  would  not  be 
likely  to  have  a  po'el  with  a  different  sense,  such  as  the  parallelism  requires. 

5*  Perles  {Analekten,  p.  161,  quoted  by  Nowack)  vocalizes  the  first  two  words  of  1.  1  thus  : 
"lii?  nnri  "On  is  dismayed;"  then  changes  "irT^Ji^  to  ISiT'  (Syro-hexaplar  translates 
this  line  as  if  it  had  "IX"!  i  which  Perles  takes  as  a  mutilation  of  15?T')-  Nowack  follows 
Perles,  but  Wellhausen  objects  on  the  ground  that  "On"  cannot  well  stand  for  all  Egypt, 
and  ITUID  is  not  understood  of  Egypt.    LXX  has  avrl  Kdircjv,  k.  t.  X. 

55  Read  with  G.  A.  Smith  Qlin  i  instead  of  Ql^nD ,  as  this  follows  in  the  next  line, 
and  the  Q^IH  have  been  mentioned  before. 

56  KOnig,  Syntax,  §  277e,  takes  T^rQD'TQ  as  noun  in  construct,  even  with  suffix  ;  so  also 
Ewald,  Syntax,  §2916  (in  poetry).  Harper,  Syntax,  g6, 1,  rem.  a,  calls  following  noun  accusa- 
tive of  limitation  ;  so  Driver,  Hebrew  Tenses,  §  193, 1 ;  Gesenius-Kautzsch,  §  1.31?-,  takes  second 
noun  as  epexegetical  of  the  first.  Davidson,  Syntax,  §  29,  4,  treats  the  second  noun  as  in 
apposition.  Gunkel,  SchOpfung  und  Chaos,  reads  nSTUi?  instead  of  nyTlC''  ■>  and  joins  to 
following  line. 


24  THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK 

■jnirp  ni3?n  "n^n:?  (9a,  6)     v 

nbnT  Tc:?  m-'  ir^jir  (ii) 
isbn^  -j^iin  ^1^<b 
■jn^DH  pnn  n3Db 
y^i<-iT:ir^''  nyin  (i2) 

*°Y-i5<-yp2n  ni^n:  (9c)      vi 
D^nn  ib^n^  -jij^i  (lo) 

ibip  Dinn  -jni 
«^D  ''inT-17^  Din 
''-j^ciD  D^n  nsm  (15) 

D^m  D^7j  n7jn 

yc:^  yir^b  nj^is-'  (is)     vii 

s'lrn  n^273  irsj^n  r\'inj2 
nbc  ''ni::-iy  -ic^  nm:? 

57  rr^ny ,  KOnig,  §  3290,  calls  infinitive  absolute  used  as  absolute  object ;  Green,  §  281, 1, 
c,  verbal  noun  used  for  infinitive  absolute  ;  Gesonius-Kautzsch,  §  113w,  substantive  used  for 
infinitive  absolute.  Wellhausen  conjectures  from  2  Sam.  23:18  the  reading  "iTiyn  1*117- 
Syriac:  "Thy  bow  is  rigid  (tense);"  LXX :  "Stretching,  Thou  didst  stretch."    In  favor  of 

ordinary  rendering,  c/.  Arabic    Sv^fi  ,  also  ny  in  2:. 5  and  D"'')2T^y .  Gen.  3:7. 

58  Wellhausen  says  1.  2  is  lost  to  all  the  arts  of  exegesis.  But  cf.  rendering  of  G.  A. 
Smith,  who  quotes  LXX,  Cod.  Barb. :  ix^P'^''!'^''-^  ^oKldas  rrjs  (f)apiTp-tjs  aiiTov.  Nowack  also 
follows  this  last.  Delitzsch  says  no  less  than  one  hundred  different  translations  of  this 
line  have  been  given.    Read  at  end  "^riSltJi?  • 

59 In  1.6  LXX  evidently  read  lySn  instead  of  "37271 1  as  it  has  "  make  small;"  per- 
haps as  well,  or  almost  so,  as  reading  of  MT.,  in  view  of  the  following  line. 

60  As  stated  below  (p.  27),  1. 1  is  very  doubtful,  both  as  to  meaning  and  position ;  the 
text  is  probably  corrupt.  Many  attempts  have  been  made  to  explain  it,  but  none  seem  to 
overcome  the  difficulties. 

61  Correct,  with  WeUhauseu  and  Nowack,  after  Ps.  77 :  18. 

62  This  emendation  is  due  to  G.  A.  Smith,  who  thinks  in'^Ta  =  IITT'XTa  ,  and  this 
suggests  to  him  IHTTQ ;  cf.  Amos  6:1;  Jer.  16:5.  At  least,  the  parallelism  requires  some 
such  change. 

63  Wellhausen  says  vs.  1.5  in  MT.  "steht  verloren."  Nowack  places  vs.  15  before  vs.  8, 
But  it  seems  suitable  here,  at  least  more  so  than  before  vs.  8 ;  Gunkel  thinks  vs.  15  supplies 
the  missing  words  of  vs.  8,  and  would  restore  a  part  of  that  verse  thus:  0*^13  DDlin  "'3 
D''70  "ITSnn  '7ri32"T)3  '7'^D'ID  1  but  he  does  it,  in  part  at  least,  to  make  hexameters. 

64  yiU'^b  is  called  an  infinitive  by  KOnig,  §  233c ;  BOttcher,  §  516,  "  noun  in  construct  with 
nX  following;  cf.  use  of  construct  with  Si"  Davidson,  guardedly,  "if  an  infinitive,  it 
governs  the  accusative."  On  the  whole,  perhaps  it  is  better  to  read  with  Wellhausen  and 
Nowack  y^TBinb  ;  cf.  LXX :  rov  awaaL.  However,  it  may  be  an  archaic  usage  whereby  an 
infinitive  noun  is  followed  by  an  accusative;  cf.  nyin.  Gen.  2:9. 

65  Read  with  Cheyne  (Commentary  on  Psalms,  p.  396)  "IIJJ  ,  instead  of  15512  . 


THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  25 

TTHS  l2:^5n  "' jt:?jn  ''nnp]  (i4) 

"^3133  T^-^ni  ^ny^jiz:  (i6)    viii 
^nsir  ibbi:  bipb 
^Tj^^yn  npn  u^lz^ 

nn^iDVb  ™ni:i< 
121:^^  D^'b  nibyb 

"nnsn-xb  riDxn  ^^  (i7)      ix 
D":23n  bin''  7i<i 

b55<  n"::>"-j5b  ni^jiiiji 
•(i^::  nbD7j7j  ^tj 

nTib:?^^  nin^n  n^^i  (is) 
^yir^  ^nb5<n  nb^3^< 
^b^n  ■'Dij^  nin^  (i9) 

nib^^^D  ^b:n  Dir^i 

•'Dsm^  ''ni^2-b:s>i 


66  Ruben  says  2p3  iu  1.  5  must  be  identical  with  Arabic  v_ttAJ  "to  break  the  head;" 
c/.  1.  3. 

67  In  1.  5,  second  word,  read  with  G.  A.  Smith,  Nowack,  and  Wellhausen,  "]^I3T33 ,  instead 

of  i^t:^n- 

68  The  last  line  is  very  doubtful,  and  seems  to  be  mutilated.  LXX :  "  they  shall  loosen 
their  bridles  as  eating  the  poor  in  secret,"  apparently  reading  rilblZ'D  for  rilS'^by  •  (In 
the  preceding  line,  for  T'T'^D  LXX  seems  to  have  read  'T'2£1"1D .)  Nowack  does  not  see  how 
the  last  line  can  be  corrected,  even  with  the  help  of  the  versions. 

69  Read  with  Wellhausen,  Nowack,  and  G.  A.  Smith,  lTffi!5?  ,  instead  of  TlEi?  ,  which 

-  \  - 
gives  no  good  sense  here ;  then  make  the  verb  agree. 

™m:i?  in  !•  5  seems  at  first  to  require  an  unusual  translation.  Gesenius-Buhl,  Dic- 
tionary, gives  "schweigend"  for  this  passage  and  1  Sam.  25:9;  cf.  LXX,  6.vairai(T0ixai. 
It  is  but  a  step  from  the  meaning  "  being  silent,"  "quiet,"  to  "wait  in  silence,"  so  "wait." 
Wellhausen  suggests  that  we  read  QnsX .  LXX  translates  last  two  lines :  "  I  will  rest  in 
the  day  of  affliction  that  I  may  go  up  to  the  people  of  my  dwelling." 

'1  Read  mSn  with  WeUhausen,  Nowack,  and  G.  A.  Smith,  after  LXX. 

72  Kautzsch  and  Nowack  read  riTQS .  instead  of  IfnUD .  the  1  having  arisen  from 
dittography. 

73  The  last  line  is  probably  a  musical  direction  ;  however,  LXX  translates  :  "  to  conquer 
in  His  praise;"  Syriac:  "And  I  will  sing  in  His  praise."    Kautzsch,  after  Ps.  4,  reads  last 

word  rriri^sa  ■ 


26  THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK 

The  third  chapter  may  be  divided  into  three  parts  (aside  from 
the  superscription,  vs.  1),  viz.,  vs.  2,  the  prayer;  vsb.  3-15,  the 
theophany ;  vss.  16-19,  its  efPect. 

The  movement  in  all  three  of  these  parts  is  the  trimeter,'*  at 
least  in  the  main.  The  variations  from  this  trimeter  movement 
are  probably  no  more  marked  than  in  the  other  parts  of  the  book. 
But  when  we  come  to  the  division  into  strophes,  it  is  a  very  diffi- 
cult matter  to  decide  what  division  to  make  of  the  material ; 
though  many  attempts  have  been  made  to  reduce  the  section  to 
some  regular  scheme  of  strophes,  yet  none  seems  to  have  met 
with  anything  like  general  approval.  Doubtless,  much  of  the 
difficulty  lies  in  the  fact  that  the  text  has  suffered  corruption. 
Still  there  are  portions  of  the  poem  that  show  something  of  the 
strophic  structure,  and  from  these  parts  we  may  reconstruct  with 
a  considerable  degree  of  probability  the  rest  of  the  poem.  For 
example,  the  prayer  must  form  a  division  by  itself,  as  indicated 
above,  and  the  result  of  the  theophany  must  mark  the  point  for 
another  division. 

The  second  verse,  the  prayer,  forms  the  first  of  the  divisions, 
and  may  be  put  in  a  strophe  of  five  lines  (Strophe  I).  The 
prayer  is  that  Yahweh  may  manifest  himself  as  of  old  in  the 
salvation  of  his  people.  The  answer  comes  in  the  theophany, 
probably  under  the  figure  of  a  thunderstorm  (vss.  3-15). 
Throughout  this  theophany  the  desert  life  of  Israel  seems  con- 
stantly in  view,  and  perhaps  the  deliverance  from  the  Egyptians. 

The  division  in  this  section  in  some  cases  seems  quite  clear, 
but  very  uncertain  in  others.  As  the  text  lies  before  us,  there 
seems  to  be  a  division  at  the  end  of  the  fourth  verse,  thus  making 
a  strophe  (the  second)  of  seven  lines.  This  strophe  has  one 
thought — the  majesty  and  brilliancy  of  Yahweh  as  he  approaches. 
In  the  next  strophe  (No.  Ill),  of  seven  lines  (vss.  5,  6),  the  poet 
describes  some  of  the  attendant  circumstances  of  His  approach  — 
glowing  heat,  pestilence,  tremors  of  the  earth.     As  a  result  of 

'<  In  a  number  of  ingenious  emendations,  Dr.  Paul  Ruben  has  restored  the  text  of  this 
chapter.  Some  of  the  corrections  are  quite  probable,  but  in  most  of  them  he  borrows  more 
from  the  Arabic  and  Assyrian  than  the  case  seems  to  warrant.  Moreover,  the  strophic 
arrangement  he  gets  is  cumbersome,  being  in  twelve-toned  hexameter  lines,  he  says ;  but, 
following  out  his  notes,  we  find  only  thirty-two  hexameter  lines,  counting  the  musical 
direction,  and,  if  the  prayer  be  dropped,  only  twenty-nine.  However,  he  inserts  two  or 
three  half  lines  to  fill  out  the  hexameter  at  different  points,  obtaining  one  from  the  Septua- 
gint,  the  others  from  other  passages.  Further,  in  places  the  two  parts  of  a  hexameter  are 
disconnected  in  thought,  e.  g.,  the  last  three  words  of  vs.  4  and  the  first  three  of  vs.  .5  ;  as  a 
result  of  this  last  arrangement,  the  next  hexameter  has  the  same  lack  of  harmony  between 
its  parts. 


THE    STROPHIC    STRUCTURE    OF    HABAKKUK  27 

these  conditions,  in  the  fourth  strophe  (vss.  7,  8),  he  sees  the 
people  of  that  south-land  in  great  commotion/^  and  is  led  to  ask 
if  after  all  Yahweh  is  angry  with  nature  —  implying  that  He  has 
other  objects  of  displeasure,  and  other  ends  in  view  —  ends  which 
he  leaves  unnamed  until  he  reaches  the  last  strophe  of  the  the- 
ophany  (No.  VII). 

Having  made  this  suggestion,  the  poet  resumes  his  description 
of  the  approach  of  the  storm  in  the  fifth  strophe  (vss.  9a,  6,  and 
12).  Here  Yahweh  is  pictured  as  a  warrior  advancing  in  might 
and  strength  to  give  battle.  Then  the  next  strophe  (No.  VI, 
vss.  9c,  10,  15)  seems  to  relate  to  the  breaking  of  the  storm,  fol- 
lowing the  more  distant  thunder  and  lightning  of  the  fifth  (though 
vs.  9c ^*  hardly  fits  in  anywhere)  —  all  nature  is  convulsed,  and  the 
deep  is  lashed  into  fury  in  His  presence.  The  storm  now  having 
burst  upon  them  in  its  fury,  the  seventh  strophe  (vss.  13,  14) 
tells  us  why  Yahweh  has  come  out  in  anger  —  to  save  his 
oppressed  people  by  the  overthrow  of  their  enemies. 

The  last  section  (vss.  16-19)  is  generally  conceded  to  repre- 
sent the  effect  of  the  theophany  on  the  poet,  or,  rather,  the  people 
whom  he  represents.  The  sixteenth  verse  (Strophe  VIII)  con- 
sists of  six  trimeter  lines,  and  represents  the  effect  on  the  poet  of 
the  theophany  and  the  attitude  he  has  resolved  to  take  in  the 
present  distress  —  he  will  be  quiet  until  (or  perhaps  wait  for)  the 
day  of  distress  that  is  coming  on  the  oppressor.  The  remainder 
of  the  poem  (vss.  17-19)  consists  of  a  strophe  of  eight  lines 
(vss.  17,  18),  a  doxology  of  three  lines  (vs.  19),  and  a  line  that 
is  probably  a  musical  direction.  In  the  strophe  (No.  IX)  he 
gives  a  number  of  suppositions  in  the  first  rAx  lines,  and  in  the 
seventh  and  eighth  what  he  has  determined  shall  be  his  attitude 

fs  The  beginning  of  this  fourth  strophe  seems  very  abrupt  after  the  third.  There  the 
description  is  general,  and  it  may  be  that  the  poet  wishes  to  give  a  special  instance  of  com- 
motion to  give  point  to  the  question  he  is  about  to  raise.  The  first  lino  is  over-long,  and 
probably  has  suffered  corruption. 

■?6The  above  division  of  the  theophany  section  (vss.  13-15),  it  must  be  admitted,  is  not 
entirely  satisfactory  ;  especially  is  this  true  of  the  sixth  strophe.  Yet  it  seoms  quite  certain 
that  the  second,  fourth,  seventh,  and  probably  the  third  and  fifth,  are  units  or  a  close 
approximation  to  such.  Hence  it  would  seem  quite  probable  that  this  section  originally 
consisted  of  seven-lined  strophes.  The  great  difficulty  lies  in  the  sixth  strophe,  in  the  line 
from  vs.  9c.  It  seems  quite  apparent  that  it  has  no  connection  with  the  rest  of  vs.  9,  which 
attaches  itself  readily  to  vs.  11  of  the  fifth.  So  the  best  we  can  do  is  to  connect  it,  conjec- 
turally,  with  vs.  10,  which  describes  the  shaking  hUls  (or  mountains)  and  the  downpour  of 
rain,  t.  e.,  the  storm  and  its  attendant  floods.  It  is  quite  probable  that  we  have  a  corruption 
of  the  text  in  the  lino.  Ruben  suggests  that  VIX  may  be  connected  with  tjOy£- ,  so  con- 
jectures "lightning,"  i.e.,  "Thou  cleavest  the  rivers  with  lightning."  But  this  does  not 
relieve  the  difficulty. 


28  THE    STROPHIC    STEUOTUEE    OF    HABAKKUK 

in  any  or  all  of  these  exigencies.  However,  there  are  those  who 
take  this  strophe  as  referring  to  an  actual  state  of  affairs,  e.  g., 
Nowack  and  Wellhausen.  But  Professor  G.  A.  Smith  and  others 
take  the  other  view.  The  latter  seems  the  better,  because  the 
trouble  from  which  relief  is  to  be  given,  judging  from  the  rest 
of  the  chapter,  arises  from  the  human  foes  of  Israel,  not  from 
blighted  crops  and  disease  among  cattle,  etc.,  as  suggested  by 
vss.  17,  18.  The  doxology  comes  in  quite  fittingly  at  the  close 
as  a  cry  of  triumphant  faith  and  hope. 

If  we  have  interpreted  vs.  16  correctly,  that  verse  in  itself 
seems  to  tell  the  whole  story  of  the  effect  of  the  theophany.  What 
follows  merely  states  what  the  poet  would  do  under  other  cir- 
cumstances. So  the  suggestion  comes  to  one  that  perhaps  the 
poem  originally  ended  with  this  verse  (16),  as  Wellhausen  has 
suggested;  i.  e.,  as  stated  above,  the  poet  no  longer  speaks  of 
disaster  due  to  the  oppression  of  a  tyrant,  but  due  to  physical 
causes  entirely.  Taking  this  into  consideration,  in  conjunction 
with  the  fact  that  the  strophic  arrangement  is  different,  they  both 
would  argue  strongly  in  favor  of  taking  the  ninth  strophe  as  a 
later  addition,  made,  perhaps,  to  adapt  the  teaching  of  the  poem 
to  other  circumstances  —  in  other  words,  it  is  a  liturgical  addition. 

Of  the  variations  from  the  trimeter  movement  in  this  chapter, 
the  first  line  of  vs.  7  has  already  been  mentioned  as  being  due,  in 
all  probability,  to  a  mutilated  text.  There  are  somewhat  long 
lines  in  vs.  14a,  c,  but  it  is  also  possible  that  there  is  some  trouble 
with  the  text  there,  as  vs.  146  is  a  dimeter,  and  one  expects  some- 
thing to  go  with  the  verb  ;  in  fact,  the  LXX  does  take  the  last 
word,  or  one  a  little  like  it,  of  vs.  14a  and  places  it  as  subject  of 
146  with  a  conjunction  before  it.  Vs.  14c  varies  quite  a  little  in 
the  versions.  There  are  no  short  lines  worthy  of  note  aside  from 
the  one  mentioned,  except  that  in  vs.  8  there  are  two  cases  in 
succession  of  the  kind  of  line  we  have  in  1 :  16c  above. 


VITA. 

I,  Fred  T.  Kelly,  was  born  near  Mineral  Point,  Wisconsin, 
June  14:,  1861.  I  prepared  for  college  at  the  Mineral  Point 
High  School,  and,  after  teaching  two  years  in  the  district  schools 
near  my  home,  entered  the  University  of  Wisconsin  in  the  fall  of 
1886.  The  following  year  was  spent  in  teaching  in  the  High 
School  at  Spring  Green,  Wisconsin.  In  the  fall  of  1888  I 
re-entered  the  University,  and  in  1891  received  the  degree  of 
B.S.  The  Slimmer  and  fall  of  1891  were  spent  with  a  party  doing 
geological  work  in  the  northern  part  of  Michigan.  In  the  fall  of 
1892  I  returned  to  the  University  and  did  partial  work  in  Semitics 
and  Hellenistic  Greek,  and  in  1895  was  appointed  assistant  in 
Hebrew  and  Hellenistic  Greek,  and  in  189G  was  made  instructor 
in  the  same  subjects,  which  position  I  now  hold.  In  addition  to 
the  graduate  work  done  in  the  University  of  Wisconsin,  I 
attended  the  University  of  Chicago  for  six  consecutive  Summer 
Quarters,  beginning  with  1896  and  closing  with  1901. 

In  pursuance  of  my  Semitic  studies  I  have  taken  work  under 
Professor  W.  H.  Williams,  President  W.  R.  Harper,  Professors 
R.  F.  Harper,  Ira  M.  Price,  J.  H.  Breasted,  George  Adam  Smith, 
and  Dr.  C.  E.  Crandall.  To  all  my  teachers  I  gratefully 
acknowledge  my  indebtedness,  and  especially  to  President  W.  R. 
Harper  and  Professors  W.  H.  Williams,  Ira  M.  Price,  and  R.  F. 
Harper,  under  whose  direction  most  of  my  work  was  done. 


Syraovia*.  N.  Y. 

PH.  M.  n.  «•« 


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The  strophic  structure  of  Habakkuk. 

Princeton  Theological  Semmary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00055  0733 


